medicine

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A substance you take to treat or cure an illness.

   This medicine has fewer side effects than the others.

2. 2
   noun

   The study and practice of treating and preventing illness.

   She is studying medicine because she wants to be a doctor.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Medicine came through French from Latin ars medicina, “the medical art,” often shortened to medicina. Medicina was formed from medicus, “physician,” which in turn came from mederi, “to heal,” originally “to know the best course.”

From Middle English medicin, from Middle French medicine, from Old French medecine, from Latin medicīna (“the healing art, medicine, a physician's shop, a remedy, medicine”), feminine of medicīnus (“of or belonging to physic or surgery, or to a physician or surgeon”), from medicus (“a physician, surgeon”). The extended sense of "Indigenous magic" is a calque of Ojibwe mashkiki (“medicine”) or mide (or cognates in related languages) when used in compounds such as Grand Medicine Society, medicine lodge, medicine dance, medicine bag, medicine wheel, medicine man, Medicine Line, and bad medicine o…

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External links

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• Cambridge Dictionary
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